my new rodeo has death wobble at speeds from 15-20mph. its only when I hit certain bumps. I have been researching and have found no fixes a bunch of tries some improvement but nobody seem to be able to get rid of it. I made an appointment to get an alignment done but i'm not sure it will fix it.

anybody know of sure fire ways to get rid of it?

it only happens a few times a day but it is annoying and embarrasing when it happens. everybody around you freaks out.

it seems to happen on alot of axle swaps and any vehicle Jeep's bronco's k5 blazers Toyota's

I have found out by lifting JEEP's mainly the Cherokee's, that they develope a Death wobble during acceleration, and sometimes during deceleration. From what we have been figuring out is either the driveline angle is now changed causing that wobble at about 25 to 30 MPH or something about the suspension design thats is causing a vibration some where. Is it like a the whole vehicle is shaking apart? Anyway You could be alittle more specific on what is happenening.

well it has manual hubs so the drive line isn't turning. the whole front end shakes I can see the tires wobble back and forth when it happens. it feels like a tire is falling off. It doesn't do it on acceleration or deceleration at about 15-20 mph going straight when it happens and it only happens on certain bumps not every bump thats what makes no sense. The rodeo has very little bump steer.

Sammy did an awesome job on the SAS it looks like it was done by someone who has done it 100 times and has perfected it.

this is a tough question becuase there is no single cause for "death wobble". you're going to have to give us lots more information. for starters, whats your caster set at? have you checked all your steering components to make sure they are tight? no slop or worn out TREs? picts of your setup might help as well.

Jeeps typically have death wobble due to track bar alignment issues after lifting. this is a function of their 4-link suspension and totally unrelated to a leaf sprung Isuzu SAS setup (I'm assuming you choose a leaf setup for your SAS)... again, why the words "death wobble" are so vague.

-Rob

I'll second that as a possible cause (usally) on our setups. I went a little overboard on the caster way back when when I was messing around with shackle lengths and such. Think it might have been up around 9-10*, actually. Anyhow, I started to get some serious flopping around of the tires, much like how you see a shopping cart's front wheels sometimes. Somehow, I got it all right again and the thing drives pretty sedately. I'll admit, most of that was by luck and not design, but I'm not super lifted and chose to try and keep the front springs as flat as possible to maintain factory caster that was built into that 1975 axle.

Or, in the words of a good friend of mine:


Thank me later for the cure.
<img src="/forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />

- mike

Thanks for the compliment Kevin.

What about this? The camber on my old Rodeo is such that the tires are tilted in at the bottom (like a baja bug). Could that in combination with too much toe in and large sticky tires cause the tires to 'load up' or bind against the pavement when the vehicle is rolling slowly? If that's the case, then maybe a small bump would allow the tire to release, and cause it to spring back to its normal position, in turn making the wheels violently slap back and forth. Geeze, did that make any sense at all???

And thanks for the InexAir plug in you signature, Kevin. <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/cheers.gif" alt="" />

camber isn't much of a concern with a solid axle rig. unless you've bent the housing, you're stuck with the camber you've got. toe will effect how your rig tracks and your tire wear, but generally isn't a factor in death wobble. Again, improper caster is most often involved and is one of the more difficult design factors to deal with when building your SAS.

-Rob

sammy do you know how much caster it has? it definently has positive camber which is puzzzling. all the steering feels tight and I've looked at everything steering related and it looks fine.

theres some good pics in the for sale ad http://www.4x4wire.com/forums/showf...mp;amp;sb=5&o=31&fpart=1

If I remember correctly, I think between four and six degrees. I put some four degree shims between the axle and springs to get it closer to spec. If you want to know exactly, put an angle finder on the top of the steering knuckle. Sorry that I can't remember exactly what I measured it at when I set it up. If it doesn't have to do with guns or fishing, I usually forget after a day.